ECFMG Certification

The Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), through its program of certification, assesses whether international medical graduates are ready to enter residency or fellowship programs in the United States that are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

To be eligible for certification by ECFMG, international medical graduates must meet the following examination and medical education credential requirements.

The examination requirements for ECFMG Certification include passing Step 1 and Step 2 of the USMLE. The Step 2 exam has two separately administered components, the Clinical Knowledge (CK) component and the Clinical Skills (CS) component.

You must send two (2) photocopies of your medical diploma and one (1) full-face color photograph to ECFMG.Applicants for ECFMG Certification must document the completion of all requirements for, and receipt of, the final medical diploma. ECFMG verifies every applicant.s medical school diploma with the appropriate officials of the medical school that issued the diploma. When ECFMG sends your medical diploma to your medical school for verification, ECFMG will request the medical school include your final medical school transcript when the school returns the verification of your medical diploma to ECFMG. An applicant.s credentials are not considered complete until ECFMG receives verification of the medical diploma and the final medical school transcript directly from the medical school. For detailed information, see Medical Education Credentials (ECFMG 2005 Information Booklet)

To be eligible for Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS, you must be officially enrolled in a medical school located outside the United States and Canada that is listed in the International Medical Education Directory (IMED) of the Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER), both at the time that you apply and at the time you take the exam. In addition, the .Graduation Years. in IMED for your medical school must be listed as .Current. at the time you apply and at the time you take the exam. Your Medical School Dean, Vice Dean, or Registrar must certify your current enrollment status on the application. This certification must be current; the official must have signed the application within four (4) months of its receipt by ECFMG.In addition to being currently enrolled as described above, to be eligible for Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS, you must have completed at least two (2) years of medical school. This eligibility requirement means that you must have completed the basic medical science component of the medical school curriculum by the beginning of your eligibility period.Although you may apply for and take the examinations after completing the basic medical science component of your medical school curriculum, you should consider the following recommendations before applying for Step 2 CK and Step 2 CS. Before taking Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS, it is recommended that you complete your core clinical clerkships, including actual patient contact. If English is not your first language, it is recommended that you take the Test of Spoken English (TSE), offered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), and achieve a score of at least 45 before taking Step 2 CS.